NEW DELHI: Odisha BJP vice-president Lekhasri Samantasingar has submitted his resignation to the Kumkum Party and announced his decision to join the BJD ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha and state assembly elections. Lekhasri was the second vice-president of the Odisha BJP after Bhrugu Paksipatra, who quit the party and joined the BJD a few weeks before the elections.
Manmohan Samal Lekhasri, in his resignation letter to the Odisha BJP chief, cited failure to win the confidence of the party leadership as the main reason for his resignation.
“For the past ten years, I have donated my sweat and blood to the Bharatiya Janata Party. But no matter how much sincerity and hard work I showed, I could not win the trust of the management. That’s why I feel this.” “I have nothing. Here, my desire to serve the people of Odisha is limited,” Legasri wrote in the letter.
Lekhashree joined the BJD on Sunday in the presence of BJD MLAs Manas Mangaraj and Sasmit Patra.
He thanked the BJD for its support and appreciated the development initiatives led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik before reporters at the Sangha Bhavan in the state capital. My hard work is not recognized. Thanks to BJD for letting me in. I am impressed with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s development efforts. I will do my best for BJD,” Lekhashree added.
The BJD is yet to announce its candidate for the Balasore Lok Sabha seat, leading to speculation about Lekhashree’s possible candidature. Focusing on the representation of women in politics, the BJD fielded seven of the 21 women candidates in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. So far, the party has fielded only six candidates for the upcoming elections.